The sound of hammers striking iron pegs, the creaking of stone-cart wheels, and the shouted instructions from the Goibniu Familia foremen echoed loudly from the vast lot behind the Abandoned Church. The construction of the magnificent Main House—the future heart of the Barbatos Familia—was underway at full speed. Construction dust occasionally flew into the air, but was immediately swept away by gentle gusts of wind that automatically kept the air around the church clean and calm.
In the side yard area, right near the row of temporary tents set up as a resting place for their new adventurers, Venti sat relaxed on an overturned wooden barrel. He wasn't plucking his lyre this time. His pair of clear teal eyes were fully focused on the small golden-haired figure in the open space before him.
Swish! Swish!
Ais Wallenstein, who was only seven years old, swung a wooden sword with both her tiny hands. Sweat soaked her forehead and neck, but she didn't stop. Every swing she made had a strange rhythm—highly disciplined, sharp, and didn't look at all like the haphazard movements of a small child.
Venti observed the trajectory of the sword carefully. He knew exactly what he was looking at. It was the remnants of the sword technique of the Hero Albert Waldstein. This little girl was unconsciously recreating the greatest swordsmanship in the world purely through her visual memory.
"Incredible," murmured Venti softly, his lips curving into a proud smile. "Stop for a moment, Ais. Your breathing is starting to get irregular."
The little girl immediately lowered her wooden sword. She regulated her panting breath, then turned to Venti with large, innocent golden eyes. Ais walked closer, then sat on the ground at the god's feet.
"Uncle Venti... were Ais's swings right just now?" asked Ais with a quiet, calm voice.
"Very right," answered Venti, reaching out to gently ruffle Ais's golden hair. "For a child your age, your technique is almost perfect. Did you often watch your Father practice in the yard? You mimic him very well."
Ais fell silent for a moment, staring at the wooden sword blade in her lap. A glint of longing flashed in her golden eyes. "Mm. Father swung it thousands of times. Ais remembers the movements. Ais wants to be strong like Father."
Venti felt a slight tremor in his chest. Seeing that pure resolve grow in the daughter of a fallen legend gave a sense of emotion that was hard to describe.
"Your father must be proud to see you now," said Venti gently.
However, the warm conversation stopped when the wind carried the scent of military discipline and a highly organized aura from the front. Venti turned his head. Passing the remnants of the ruined front fence and walking along the side of the abandoned church, a boy stepped closer calmly.
He was barely in his early teens, but his upright posture and measured footsteps showed that he had undergone very rigorous training. He had neatly styled straight blonde hair and wore a functional academy uniform designed like knight's armor—the signature uniform of the School District (Gaku-ku).
The teenager stopped not far from the row of tents. His sharp eyes observed the green-clad young man assessing.
Venti stood up from his wooden barrel, smiling broadly. Of course, he recognized this young knight.
"Wow, a very rare guest visiting our small camp," greeted Venti casually. "What brings the Captain of the Baldr Familia—the ace knight of the School District—here?"
Leon flinched slightly. His eyes widened for a moment because his identity and position were immediately recognized. He quickly composed himself, placed his right hand on his chest, and bowed with perfect respect.
"My name is Leon Vardenburg," he said in a calm yet firm tone. "Forgive my sudden arrival, God Barbatos. I do not mean to disturb your headquarters construction project."
Venti chuckled, waving his hand. "No problem! The sound of hammers back there is indeed a bit noisy. So, what is a knight like you looking for here, Leon?"
Leon straightened his body back up. "I came to meet Miss Alfia. I heard she is under the protection of your Familia now. It has been quite a while since we last met, and there is an urgent matter I need to ask her."
Venti stared at Leon intently. He already knew exactly what this kid was going to ask. The results of Leon's expedition and inspection of the Dragon Valley must have made him anxious.
"Alfia is inside," said Venti lightly. He looked down at the little girl beside him. "Ais, go inside the church and tell Aunt Alfia that a blonde knight is looking for her."
Ais nodded obediently, glancing at Leon for a moment before running across the side yard and entering through the door of the old church.
Not long after, the wooden door opened with a soft creak. Alfia stepped out. She wore a simple house dress with a white apron still tied around her waist. Her heterochromatic eyes immediately locked onto Leon's figure standing near the tent area.
Despite looking like an ordinary housewife, her absolute Silence aura still radiated.
"You grew a little taller, Leon," said Alfia flatly, stepping closer and standing beside Venti.
Leon bowed deeply. "It is an honor to meet you again, Miss Alfia."
Alfia crossed her arms over her chest. "I know you're not the type of person who would waste time just to say hello, especially amidst the busyness of the School District. Tell me, what is bothering you that you came looking for me?"
Leon took a deep breath, his facial expression turning very serious. "It's about the Dragon Valley, Miss Alfia. I was the one sent by God Baldr to inspect the place right after the dragon roared and shook the whole world."
Hearing the words "Dragon Valley", Alfia was not surprised at all. The dragon's roar was heard and panicked the gods. However, Alfia had to maintain her act to cover the tracks of the god currently whistling softly beside her.
"And then?" Alfia responded with a controlled flat tone. "What did you find there that made you bother coming here?"
"The old storm wind seal has vanished," reported Leon, his voice trembling slightly with urgency. "Instead, there is an anomaly in the structure of the new seal. When my team and I tried to enter, we kept walking forward, but the space around us warped. We were trapped in a spatial loop and always returned to the starting point. It's as if the space in that valley is twisting itself."
Alfia narrowed her eyes. Leon's analysis proved to be very accurate, exactly as Venti had described about the effects of his Temporal Severance.
"Before coming here," continued Leon, "I had already met Lord Zald. But he is a pure physical fighter and understands absolutely nothing about anomalies in seal structures like that. It was Lord Zald who suggested I look for you. He thought maybe you could identify what phenomenon is capable of altering a seal structure into a large-scale spatial anomaly like that."
Alfia snorted softly, looking at Leon with a very condescending flat stare.
"Zald is indeed stupid," said Alfia coldly. "Just because I was once on the front lines doesn't mean I am an expert in everything. I know nothing about the seal anomaly you mentioned."
Leon was stunned. He expected a lengthy and analytical answer from Alfia, but he received a very cold dead-end answer instead.
"Whatever the reason," continued Alfia sharply, cutting off the young knight's curiosity, "if that seal anomaly actually prevents the dragon from getting out, then consider us lucky. Tell Baldr to withdraw his troops from the north. Don't attack that seal, or you yourselves will trigger a disaster."
Leon lowered his head, hiding his disappointment at not getting any clues. "I understand. Thank you for your time, Miss Alfia."
However, instead of turning to leave, Leon took a step back and placed his hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist. A faint Level 6 aura radiated from his teenage body, pressing against the air around the tent area.
"Before I go," said Leon, his eyes staring at Alfia with burning resolve, "allow me to test one more thing. I still want to know how far the distance is between me and the strongest adventurer of the previous era."
Venti whistled softly, taking a step back while smiling in amusement. "Oho, kids these days are really full of spirit."
Alfia looked at Leon with a condescending gaze. She didn't change her posture at all, her arms remaining crossed casually over her chest.
"Stupid brat," muttered Alfia. "Do you think you are old enough to challenge my shadow?"
Leon didn't answer. He drew his slender sword in a flash of silver light, darting forward with incredible speed that could cleave the wind. His attack point was very precise, aiming right at the empty side of Alfia's defense.
However, before the sword was even a meter away from Alfia's body, the silver-haired woman's lips parted slightly.
Without an incantation, without hand movements, she unleashed her signature close-range sound magic.
"Gospel."
BOOM!
A highly dense sonic shockwave exploded right in front of Leon's face. Pure pressure that shattered the laws of physics around it.
Leon didn't have time to react. His body was thrown into the air like a ragdoll kicked by a giant. He flew across the yard and slammed hard into the stone wall until it cracked.
Smash!
His slender sword slipped from his grasp and embedded itself in the ground. Leon fell to his knees, coughing hard while clutching his tight chest.
"Go back to your school, Leon," said Alfia coldly, without the slightest bit of pity in her eyes. "And learn how to swing a sword without arrogance."
Leon tried to get up on trembling legs. He picked up his sword, then bowed deeply—this time with absolute respect accompanied by obedience. "Thank... you for the lesson, Miss Alfia."
Without daring to look back again, Leon turned and walked quickly leaving the churchyard, realizing that the gap in power between him and the legend of the previous era was still very far, like heaven and earth.
As soon as Leon completely disappeared, Alfia turned her body, glaring at Venti with a sharp look that implied immense annoyance.
"Very nice," sneered Alfia coldly. "You caused trouble in the North, stole Aria causing that giant lizard to roar, and now I'm the one who has to bother chasing away a curious little knight who comes challenging me to a fight in my front yard."
Venti laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head while the sound of hammers pounding from the construction project echoed again. "Ahahaha... Sorry, sorry. But at least you handled it very elegantly, Alfia! That hit just now was really clean."
Alfia massaged the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache. "Shut your mouth, Stupid God. If any other party comes here, I will throw you to the front to deal with them."
Venti smiled gently, then turned his face away. "Relax. Orario's focus will soon shift elsewhere."
Venti stood calmly, letting the gust of wind caress his face. Suddenly, a free laugh erupted from his mouth.
"Ahahaha! Oh my, that wine god is truly a terrible director."
Alfia frowned. "Wine god? What does he have to do with all this?"
"The wind just told me," answered Venti while wiping the corners of his slightly teary eyes from laughing. "Sylphie, Hedin, Hogni, and the twins will be home soon. I already knew from the start that Enyo... or more precisely Dionysus, was planning a stupid theatrical act to test our strength through his underground bugs."
Alfia's eyes narrowed slightly. "Enyo? A very unfamiliar name. Whoever he is, what kind of play is he staging?"
"That's the funniest part, Alfia," continued Venti with an unstoppable playful smile. "Of all the people we have, it turns out Dionysus foolishly ordered the Ikelos Familia adventurers to target and kidnap our member whom he considers the weakest and most helpless... Sylphie."
Hearing that name mentioned as the kidnapping target, the corner of the silver-haired woman's lips twitched, forming a highly lethal smirk.
Targeting and trying to kidnap the Great Spirit Aria? A pure entity whose power was now considered a 'weak rookie' and an easy target? Even without mentioning the presence of the two former elf kings and the two anomalous elf sisters accompanying her, the kidnapping plan itself was already a ridiculously suicidal joke.
"So," said Alfia coldly, the Silence aura around her slowly solidifying again. "When do we start returning their greeting?"
Venti smiled meaningfully, his teal eyes flashing sharply under the sunlight. "Tonight. It seems we must prepare to send two foolish gods back to Tenkai... Ikelos and Dionysus."
If anyone dared to look for trouble with their Familia right now, then the real storm would come to them.
------------------------------
"Like my work? Catch up to Chapter 71 over on my Patreon!"
P - Gem_Blanks
Thank you so much for your support — you make all of this worthwhile.)